Stevenson star heading to Comerica Park

Stevenson High baseball coach Joe Emanuele didn’t have any more adjectives in his equipment bag while describing graduating seniors Zack McGuire and Brandon Hughes.

The coach knows both were phenomenal players for his Titans. They both had outstanding high school careers.

When it came time to decide who to nominate for the 33rd Annual Michigan High School Baseball Coaches East-West All-Star game, Emanuele was in a quandary. Both players are heading to Michigan State University where they will play baseball.

“I flipped a coin,” Emanuele said. “I did not know how else to do it. A coach can only nominate one of his players and both were very, very deserving.”

That coin flip favored McGuire. An excellent student, he also excelled on the baseball diamond. He hit .443 and among those hits were 18 doubles, two triples and two home runs. He also knocked in 52 runs.

Those numbers are eye-popping, especially considering that Stevenson competes in the rugged Macomb Area Conference Red Division. Coach Emanuele’s Titans went a perfect 15-0 in the MAC Red, and finished the season with a 37-3-1 record.

They advanced all the way to the Division 1 quarterfinals before falling to MAC Red rival Grosse Pointe South.

McGuire, who plays travel ball in the summer with the Detroit Metro Stars, will be on the field at Comerica Park for the upcoming MHSBCA all-star game on Thursday, July 10. Joining him will be fellow Macomb County players Dan Chmielewski of Eisenhower and Richmond’s Zach Leach. Other players from the Macomb Area Conference will be Jared Tobey of St. Clair and Marysville’s Joshua Smith.

Hughes also plays for the Metro Stars. Both Hughes and McGuire were named to the MHSBCA All State Dream Team.

“When Coach Emanuele told me I was on the all-star team, I was a little bit surprised it was me rather than Brandon. It was sort of an awkward situation because I felt bad for him but it was also a dream come true. The coach said we both deserved it and told us it was decided on a coin flip. Brandon is a very good friend.”

McGuire said he tries to get to several games per season at Comerica Park.

One of the most memorable took place last October when the Oakland A’s were in Detroit playing the Tigers in an American League Division Series game. In that wild contest, Max Scherzer came out of the bullpen and wriggled out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the eighth inning to lead the Tigers to an 8-6 win. That victory forced a fifth game, and Justin Verlander pitched the Tigers to a 3-0 in the fifth and deciding game of the series.

“It was a crazy atmosphere at Comerica Park,” said McGuire. “I was there with Brandon and his mom and dad. Mrs. Hughes got the tickets through work and they were nice enough to take me. We were in the fourth row behind the Tigers’ dugout. It was special being there that night. It is always special just walking into Comerica Park and seeing the field. I have always dreamed of playing on that field.”

That dream will come true soon enough. It’s one he has embraced since he was four when he was playing on a coach pitch team with his older brother, Drew, who was six.

“My dad always said I had a knack for baseball. He said he realized it when I was a four-year-old shortstop shouting instructions to the second baseman, who was six,” said McGuire, laughing.

McGuire, who graduated from Stevenson with a 4.02 grade point average, will be following a pre-dental course of study at Michigan State. He wants to become a dentist.